India saw most number of tuberculosis deaths, patients in 2016: WHO report

India topped the list of countries across the world with the highest number of people infected with tuberculosis as an estimated 279,000 patients were diagnosed with and 423,000 died of the highly contagious lung disease in 2016, the World Health Organization has said.

In its annual report on tackling TB, the WHO said the disease is the ninth leading cause of death worldwide and the leading cause from a single infectious agent, ranking above HIV/AIDS.

It was also the main cause of deaths related to antimicrobial resistance and of people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS.

There were 10.4 million new TB cases worldwide and seven countries accounted for 64% of the total burden with India bearing most of the brunt, followed by Indonesia, China, Philippines, Pakistan, Nigeria, and South Africa, it said.

China has an estimated 895,000 lakh patients, Indonesia about 102,000 lakh, and the Philippines and Pakistan about five lakh patients suffering from the killer disease.